MONTPELIER ó Vermontís senior U.S. senator says he hopes a farm bill now working its way through Congress will save taxpayer money while continuing assistance for dairy farmers and conservation programs.

Leahy says the farm bill ó which the Senate will resume working on after the Memorial Day recess ó replaces the existing dairy program with a retooled system focused on avoiding an oversupply of milk.

He said itís hoped that the new approach will smooth out what have been big fluctuations in wholesale milk prices.

Meanwhile, Leahy said the farm billís conservation programs include new incentives for farmers to address runoff that has been blamed for polluting Lake Champlain and rivers feeding it.